DENVER – Guard Doug Karczewski, a former Jets’ draft pick, is now with the Broncos’ practice squad and represents the only Denver player who has played for Bill Parcells.

Because of that, he’s been a popular interview this week with the Jets and Broncos playing each other tomorrow at Mile High Stadium to save their respective seasons.

“I know they’re going through hell right now,” Karczewski, who was cut by the Jets in preseason, told the Rocky Mountain News. “I know their life is pretty miserable.”

Karczewski said he notices a distinct difference in the way Broncos coach Mike Shanahan and Bill Parcells handle things such as the adversity the two teams are mired in now.

“Around here, players carry their weight,” Karczewski said. “They don’t have to be told they’re losing. They don’t have to be yelled at and killed. Up there [with the Jets], they know that, too, but at the same time they’re looking over their shoulder. [Parcells] keeps you moving and stays after it. I know it’s tough for those guys right now.

“He will have them pumped up coming here this week.” *It looks as if WR Dedric Ward will return punts for the Jets tomorrow, with Corey Sawyer inactive.

On the other side, the Jets’ coverage teams are well aware of Denver’s kick and punt returner Chris Watson, who according to his teammates is a whisker away from breaking one for a TD.

Last week, Watson was tackled by Tampa Bay punter Mark Royals, causing Watson’s teammates to razz him this week, saying he should be penalized for “running into the kicker.”

“It’s about to happen for him,” said TE Dwayne Carswell, the Denver special teams captain. “It seems like he’s one block away on a couple of them.”

Oddly enough, as close as Watson came on those two punt returns, he’s averaging only 5.4 yards per return, though he’s averaging 24.5 on kickoffs. *There has been speculation that Parcells was angered by Shanahan’s decision to let John Elway attempt to throw a TD pass late in the Jets’ 23-10 loss to the Broncos in the AFC title game. Parcells yesterday refuted that.

“I don’t know where this came from,” he said. “People attribute it to me. This is bull[bleep]. This is some writer trying to stir something up. It’s our job to stop them.”